Should You Transition to Social CRM?

The emergence and popularity of social media sites has brought drastic changes to the business management software market. Social processes are now entering the world of CRM, allowing users to combine their efforts and experience to produce better results. In order to make this transition, companies need to focus on changing their operational strategies.

New approach
There are many ways companies can prepare to integrate social features into their CRM experience. One of the major suggestions involves the security of social media and compliance with industry regulations. As social media in business is a fairly recent phenomenon, companies may be lax in enforcing stringent policies to do with it. This is a mistake, as the laws and regulations holding the field in check are currently fragmented. The correct approach to CRM governance could, therefore, vary widely between fields and individual companies.

Another suggestion concerns companies’ motivation for moving into social space. While it is now possible to add advanced business management software that will engage with a social media strategy, it is unwise to install and use them blindly. Instead, IT departments can determine exactly who in the company is set to benefit most from the systems.

Philosophical shift
Social media has made changes in the relationships between customers and businesses, and another of suggestion for companies is based on acknowledging this shift. In a socially-enabled marketplace, customer reputation belongs to the public. The source encouraged CRM managers to accept the shift and ease up on control of public brand image, though the transition could be difficult.

Engaging with customers
Though communication with customers has become more open and evenhanded with the rise of social media, the goal is the same – engagement. The medium for engagement is new – Facebook posts and Twitter links taking their place alongside old-fashioned outreach – but the mission is the same. Keeping customers interested in a product or service to ensure future purchases is the bread and butter of CRM.

Make engagement the central part of a CRM strategy by beginning in the targeting phase. Companies can improve their chances to grab and hold customer interest through careful screening and selection of potential buyers. Pursuing unlikely buyers could be a waste of time and resources – things that companies cannot spare in the struggle to forge strong relations.